In a farmland far, far away…
There is a house that lies at the edge of a place far Beyond. It is a strange place that is hard to quantify. A place that never was yet still is. A place that only came into being not too long ago and yet had existed since an age before anyone could remember. A field full of corn and luscious crops as far as the light could touch. Growing from strong soil under constant sunlight.
Only one person lived on this lonely farm. An old red-haired woman who yet looked as young as a teen in the glistening sunlight. She woke up every day, donning her blue leather overalls to go outside in the soft soil to labor away at the good crops she was growing. Every day she planted a new seed in place of everything she harvested that day. And every day the crops would sleep only to wake up all full and strong, ready to be reaped all over again.
It was a quiet life for this woman, a simple pleasure of repetition as she took comfort in knowing the predictable story of her life. She treasured this simple existence – for once upon a time her story was a lot less predictable. A story full of tears and mournful cries, one where heroes shed their blood and the villains they faced would triumph.
Now her life was fruitful, straightforward, and full of sugar and meat. This was the reward for her labor – the legendary labor.
Weiss Schnee would land close to this plot of land, not too far away from the red-haired woman. The woman smiled under her straw hat knowing the Ice Queen was approaching. But the work continued, for the farmland was fertile and demanding. It wished life upon the dirt, from the Dust beneath, life birthing from the specks of sand.
"Good haul today, Red?" Weiss asked, floating above the woman.
Red glanced up to where she floated, grinning:
"Stick around for a while, eh? I'm making corn soup, it's good. With these onions it'll be extra sweet."
"No, thank you. I'm not hungry."
Weiss floated closer to the woman, but the closer she got the stronger the gravity felt on her feet. Until a certain point where she was essentially forced onto the ground.
"So, how was your day?" Red asked as she plucked the potatoes from the ground and chucked them into a leather sack.
"A lot of surprises I must say. Sometimes I wish I have Rubio's future vision. But apparently not even he saw his uncle returning from the dead."
Red spun her head around at the mention.
"Qrow… died? Then came back?" She stood there, pondering for a second. "I must be getting the stories in the sands mixed up. How's school? You making any friends?"
"Why do I need to make friends? I have bigger concerns. Ozymandias is still out there, free to roam around. He is too dangerous to be left alone. There are Grimm monsters in other kingdoms, as well. Giants roaming the West. Sea serpents to the East. I can't just ignore the planet, it needs my protection!"
"Don't repeat the mistakes I made, Weiss. I have a lot of regrets, and I don't want you to have them, too. You get too focused in the work, and it's easy to forget the little things."
Weiss paused, staring at the ground – as she adjusted her service cap and looked straight into Red's eyes.
"His name – is Jaune," Weiss said at last. "I thought he was a spy, but I think what Rubio told me is finally sinking in. Maybe I need to stop flying so high in the sky."
Red removed her straw hat, letting her luscious crimson hair flow in the wind and under the sunlight as it illuminated her wonderful smile and shining green eyes. They glowed like brilliant emerald pieces. And from the emerald, her tears began to fall – reminiscing the past.
"Jaune…" Red muttered to herself, knowing Weiss can still hear her, "you are still as you are. I'm glad. Treat him well, Weiss. You've been flying high for so long, it's about time you reconnect to the people down below."
"Thank you, Professor," Watts said, shaking Qrow's hands one final time for the day. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some papers to mark. I'll send all the details to your scroll tonight for the meeting tomorrow."
"Sleep well, Watts," Qrow waved his hand, before proceeding to leave the empty classroom.
It was a weird sensation walking in these familiar halls once more, the halls that he himself once grew up in when he was a young lad. He had many memories of this place. Not only of his time as a student, but also of the reunions and visits he made to see old friends once more. Many of them perished in the fight for the Valley against the Empire. Many more escaped with the King to a place across the lands. How did it all come to this?
He remembered the times he would come to these halls with a bottle in his hands, catching the younger students who admired him so much for his cavalier attitude. He smiled remembering the times he would get in trouble with Goodwitch. But now, walking around without a bottle in hand – it was a strange sensation, both uplifting and yet burdened at the same time. Feeling the thirst to the point it felt routine at this point. His lips went dry very fast, and his throat was sore. His brain told him to get some hot soup to ease the pain, but his gut instinct instead told him to wash it down with the liquor.
It made him think about the path he was currently on, stopping right at a crossroad. Wondering why he was even here at all, on the side of the victors of the war. He wasn't even supposed to be alive.
But of course, being alive now cleared his head – as he only just now remembered he still had family left in the living world. And one of them was standing right before him.
The young man appeared in his real form, not in any disguises. But he appeared with his hood down and shiny red cloak in sight, just to make sure his uncle knew right away who was standing in front of him.
Qrow smiled on, a single tear rolling down his face:
"Hey… kiddo."
Rubio kept his head held down, refusing to look up. Because he was shaking so much he seemed almost incapable of moving.
"I wish I can touch you right now. Sometimes I go to sleep and I don't want to dream of what tomorrow will bring. But these eyes keep showing me… I just want to gouge them out and break out of this cell right now. I wish… I wish I can touch you – Uncle Qrow."
Qrow put his hand forward to pat Rubio on his head, only to then remember the true extent of what his nephew was capable of when his hand fell right through the mirage in front of him. Qrow was never good with illusion magick. It was something a lot of his peers picked up from King Oz, but he himself never paid much attention in class.
"Why…" Rubio continued, "I heard the news when you… when you offed yourself. I thought about joining you. But I saw so much pain and misery on this planet, so much pain in our future. I couldn't just leave them here."
"I know, Rubio… I know."
"I don't want these eyes," Rubio hiccupped, tears streaming down his face. "I want… I want to feel you again, Uncle Qrow. Feel the touch of family."
"And you will, soon," Qrow's voice cracked, heart breaking as he watched Rubio shaking. "Come on, kiddo. Let me see your face."
And thus, Rubio obeyed, looking up at last – tears still pouring, refusing to stop. Making his silver eyes shimmer like the bright moonlight.
"I am – so sorry," Qrow reached out his hand, trying to touch him. "I should never have left. It was the biggest mistake of my life. But I promise you – I will stay by your side for the rest of my life."
"You promise? Really, really promise?"
"Listen, Rubio… Ruby – me coming back here is a sign. For years, I thought my Bad Luck Semblance was a curse. But it may have been a blessing in disguise after all. Because it refused to let me die. Destiny refused, Destiny reminded me that I still had a duty on this earth. A kid to take care of. That's what I remembered when I was falling to the waves below. And the water carried me to shore. I've got a second chance now, and I will never put you through that ever again – that is a promise."
It was said that the blood of Valeans were thick and immensely powerful. Bound together by an invisible cosmic thread that made them stronger. But Rubio and Qrow were not related by blood. And yet, here on this day, they felt a strength and power within their bond that grew into something unlike anything they had ever felt before in their entire life, not even with their other family members. Rubio's tears flowed on just as Qrow's also began wetting his cheeks. This was definitely a sign, or perhaps a warning of some kind? Whatever it was, one thing was for sure – Qrow vowed that day to never let it go to waste, not even if the world were to end.
On the eastern shores of the Valley, facing away in the direction of the land of Mistral was a vast ocean ruled by the one great pirate god Raven Branwen, ruler of the sea. She commanded with her a great many ships that would decimate any sea monsters that even thought about looking in her direction. One could be quick to be deceived by her unassuming appearance, that of a woman in her dark red fancy bathrobe with nothing else but a pair of wooden sandals and a curved long blade by the side of her hip.
She had always dressed so casually with little to no protective armor because she knew she was nigh invincible while on the sea. Her Aura was almost unmatched, allowing her the freedom to move without cumbersome metal on her body. And when she moved without this burden, she would be able to cut islands into pieces with ease if she so desired.
This arrogance was a privilege, a privilege she wanted to flaunt to the rest of the world – to show everybody how rich she truly was. Because at the end of the day, that was all that mattered to this woman, treasure.
If there was gold on the sea, Raven would no doubt swoop in and hoard it to herself, never letting go. And there were lots of gold, indeed, on this vast ocean. Not just the physical coins. But they came in the form of trade routes, spices, and minions as well.
All of that came crashing down, however, when the battleships of the Northern lands descended to these shores and cut off the trade routes, severing that artery. And thus, for the first time in her entire life, Raven began to doubt – questioning her invincibility.
And she was not the only one to question it as well.
"Raven," Yang said, pointing to the map on the table. "Should we move the men further south? Our bases there are losing morale, they could use all the help we can give."
Raven stayed silent at her daughter's questioning. She only glared at the map of the Eastern seas. This place was her home, she knew every corner of these waters. And knew exactly where to hide and run from to keep her little empire operational. It was only recently did it dawn on her that she may have finally run out of water to hide. Because up in the sky was a being who could see far beyond the horizon, and move faster than the wind.
"Go back home, little girl," Raven said to Yang. "I never asked you to tag along."
"I am not going anywhere. You're not my captain."
"Don't you get it?" Raven snapped, "You stupid girl! The flying demon is here. If you don't leave now, you will die."
"That is for me to decide. Not for her, nor you – Raven."
But of course, the two of them would soon realize the true power of someone who could ascend Beyond. The moment the wind exploded on the outside of their ship like that of the sound of a cannonball, they knew right there and then they had been found. Raven would pick up her sword to muster up the last of her confidence. Stepping forth outside her captain's quarter to face up high in the sky the one being floating in the middle of the brewing storm. Her cape flew like that of a pair of angel's wings, glaring down where the pirate god stood with a deathly glare from on high.
"So – you've finally managed to seduce my brother," Raven looked up with a gaze full of rage. "What did you promise him? Wealth? Bringing dead friends back to life? A second chance?"
"You knew?" Weiss asked, as the rain started pouring on from behind her. "You knew he was alive?"
"My brother is many things, a weakling is not one of them. He is too strong and stubborn to die, even by his own hands. We could've ruled the seas together. But instead, he wanted to write songs and poetry. All that matters in this world is treasure, steel, precious metals – things that are tangible. Not imaginary things like words or dreams."
"But what if Dreams are real?" Weiss asked. "What if thoughts can be made real and physical?"
"Then I will cut them," Raven smirked, tapping on the hilt of her blade. "I am the master of my own destiny, my own dreams and ambitions – not the Seasons, the gods. Not even you, flying demon."
"Come quietly, Raven. Don't make this harder on yourself."
"Then what? You'll execute me like you're going to execute my student, Adam? That stupid kid really doesn't know his limits."
"Do you?" Weiss glared at her.
"The boy tried to cut you with his Aura. But it will never be deep enough to do any damage unless he coats his sword with Aura as well. He is strong, has potential, but he lacks the will to do what is required of him."
"He has killed dozens."
"Collateral damage, he still has that hesitation in him. It is subtle, you wouldn't be able to see it even with your eyes. I myself have no problem getting my hands dirty, that's how I conquered the seas. But that boy – Adam is a pure Edenite."
Weiss's eyes lit up at the mention of that word.
"What did you just say?"
"His blood is so pure, it might as well be made of diamond," Raven explained. "He doesn't realize it, yet. But there's a reason why he is so obsessed with the Lost Virtues. The magick inside his blood is like that of Valean royalty. Incredibly strong and dense. You Atlesians are afraid of these Southern bloodlines, I can tell. Without your strength, Ice Queen, your people would've been conquered by the Prophet King long ago. THAT is a fact!"
"Stop stalling for time, Raven. There is no victory for you here. Come quietly before it gets worse. It is time to end this."
"You're right!" Yang suddenly spoke up, readying herself and her yellow gauntlets. "It's time we end your tyranny."
Without another moment to waste, she leaped up high in the air at a speed faster than sound itself. Appearing in front of Weiss in a mere few seconds. Her leather long coat would fly into the air just behind her back exactly like Weiss's own Atlesian silk cape.
The yellow gauntlets began shifting, metal folding on top of one another and crawling up the side of her forearms to form into a bulky but powerful shotgun on each of her hands. A clicking sound resonated through the air as she readied up her punch, coating her entire arm in a fiery yellow Aura – to then strike forth with a silent fury as she stared forth into the Ice Queen's cold unblinking eyes.
And still her eyes and will remained strong as steel or diamond, even in the face of Yang's brute strength. Launching a punch forth that ruptured the very air around them to create an explosion as loud as the cannons on Raven's ships. The storm brewed on, raining down on the both of them and blowing away the smoke from the Dust bullets – only to then reveal to Yang that her punch did not even leave a scratch on the Superman herself. Her uniform remained clean of dirt or even rain for that matter.
Because upon closer inspection, Yang realized that Weiss was covering herself in a layer of Aura so thick that it prevented both the rain and her gunfire from making contact. Floating before her, Weiss stopped Yang's punch dead in her tracks with a single Aura-powered finger, with her left hand then revealing how she caught every single shotgun pellet fired from her gauntlet at a speed Yang could not even detect – tossing all the pellets into the ocean.
Weiss's Aura finger was so strong, Yang's fist did not even make contact.
"You would lead young men and women like this one into battle for what, Raven?" Weiss glared down, before she proceeded to backhand Yang out of the sky and into the sea, squatting her like a fly. "So you can have your treasure? Millions of people in the world are dying, and you instead chose to use your power so you can sit on your empty throne and sip wine all day while others suffer."
"Stupid girl," Raven spat a mouthful to the side, as she drew forth her sword from her revolving sheath. The blade glowed a hateful red, covered in fire Dust. It was an abnormally long sword, longer than any one-handed blade, or even two-handed ones.
"Nowhere to run," said Weiss, cracking her knuckles. "Just you and me, no more games."
"How about one last wager?" Veins began popping up on Raven's angry gaze. "If I can cut you, even for a single inch, you let my ships and my men go."
To that – Weiss simply responded:
"No."
Faster than the eyes could track, Weiss would pull forth the rapier from her belt and launch it forth like that of a spear – flying at a speed and weight so incomprehensible it was like a shooting star. It was only when the rapier was a split second away from making contact did Raven finally feel the true weight of this unfathomable device being lobbed at her.
This thing was no ordinary sword. It almost seemed like a device sent down from the heavens, and it weighed as much as an entire mountain. Forged from metal so dense no mortal on Remnant could possibly lift it with their own strength. Raven herself had cut apart mountains and islands before, she knew her own limits very well.
But only now when the rapier tore through her right shoulder to sever her arm clean off did she finally give in to the idea that she was just a big fish in a small pond after all this time. Her own invincible Aura could not do anything to protect her from the piercing projectile that not only fell through her flesh and bones, but into the ship's wooden structure as well – sinking the entire thing like a volcanic eruption. Her own Aura at that moment might as well be made out of tissue paper in the face of this overwhelming force.
Raven screamed into the sky, clutching tightly onto her wound. Just as the rainfall was soaking her own clothes, mixing water with her blood dripping and bursting forth like a geyser. Her mind was in shambles, with a distress bell inside her head ringing so loud she thought she was going deaf. Falling to the floor she did not even have the strength remaining to care for her sinking ship.
From the depths of the water, Yang launched herself upward to land beside Raven on the battered wooden structure. In the distance, she herself could hear the sound of Atlesian cannons being fired from afar towards Raven's grand fleet. Many other ships beside them tried to fight back, loading their own cannons and guns with as many Dust bullets as they could find. But many simply saw no hope in resistance now that they witnessed their captain's fall, and thus decided to abandon their current vessels entirely.
Yang looked around, panicking as she tried to find a way to patch up her dying mother. Looking for a piece of cloth, or even a piece of rope.
"HELP US!" Yang shouted to the sky, looking up to where Weiss was floating as she held her mother close. "You can't just leave us here! She is dying, get down here you damn coward!"
"NO!" Raven grunted, grabbing Yang by her collar. "We are pirates, little girl. We do what we must. There is no turning back from anything we do. And we do not accept help from tyrants."
"Stop talking, Raven. You're dying."
"Then let it be. I would rather spill my blood on the sea than let it spill beneath a guillotine. We are Valeans, you hear? Our blood is sacred. So get out of here, and live. This legacy depends on you… Yang."
"Raven…"
"GO! Get out of here before I toss you overboard myself. I won't ask twice."
Under the heavy rainfall soaking Yang's own face, her fist began to tighten as she stared down this once great pirate god. A woman with all the power and status in the world – now reduced to nothing but a cripple. The sight disgusted her, made her uneasy of what this woman had become. And in this blind anger there Yang felt an ounce of pity as well.
Confused of her own feelings, she stepped off from the sinking wooden structure to then dive deep into the dark ocean on the side of this once mighty ship that triumphed over the seas. She dared not look back, not wanting to see the death of something so big and majestic sinking into the belly of this murky water. But within that pain stinging her heart grew forth a desire for vengeance, birthed into being from that pity, sadness, and blind confusion.
She gritted her teeth in this silent fury, swearing on that day she will return one day, even if it would kill her in the end. For nothing short of blood would be adequate payment for what the Atlesian Superman had taken away from her on this day.